Chapter 7 At 1:30 pm , Charles was in a meeting when his phone buzzed . He was about to dismiss the call , assuming it was Teresa , until he saw East Street Preschool's caller ID . Worried something might be wrong with Yolanda , he quickly adjourned the meeting and stepped outside to take the call . " Hello , is this Yolanda's parent ? " a female voice came through . " Family Fun Day started 30 minutes ago . We've been waiting for you . I know these events may not seem like a big deal to busy parents , but right now your daughter is the only child sitting alone in the corner ." Charles was far from an irresponsible parent . He assumed Teresa would attend the event once she occurred to him that she might not go . caw his message . It simply hadn't With no time to reach Teresa now , he responded calmly , " I'll be there right away ." Hanging up , reschedule his remaining meetings .. he immediately instructed his assistant to ** The school event ended at 4:30 pm . Yolanda had been quiet and unhappy all afternoon . After school , Charles they sat together in the back . He could tell something was wrong . " Are you okay today ? " he asked , looking at her sad face . Yolanda's eyes grew teary . " What happened to Mom ? I told her to come early . All the other kids had their moms there , Dad . " She wiped her eyes . " If Miss Naomi wasn't performing , I wouldn't have wanted Mom to come at all . " walked her to the car and ར but I only had Charles took Yolanda's hand and said gently , " This was Dad's mistake . It won't happen next time . " But Yolanda still didn't feel better . All the other kids had their moms there . Only she came with Dad . And in some games , having a dad gave her an edge . She loved coming in first , but not when it didn't seem fair . Seeing Yolanda still upset , Charles was about to say more . Just then , his phone rang . It was Roselyn calling . དང་ བ་ དན་ ད ོ ད་ དང་ མི་ དག་ ད་ རེས་ གང་ ཚད་ འ ོ་ ན་ ག ex %% e == ་ རང་ ཡོད་ ད་ ར་ དོན་ ད་ ནས་ ང་ He answered the phone and Roselyn's voice came through , " Your father's birthday is tomorrow . We have some family friends coming for dinner tonight . Bring Yolanda and meet me at Lacey Mall ." Charles paused for a second before remembering tomorrow was indeed his father's birthday . " Okay , " he said before hanging up . Turning to Yolanda's still - frowning face , he gently brushed her cheek . " Grandpa's birthday's tomo couldn't make it today . She's busy preparing everything at Logan Manor . Remember how she always cook sweetheart . That's why Mom up a feast for this ? " Yolanda thought for a moment and realized it did sound right . Feeling a little better , she lifted her chin and said , " Well , that explains it . Otherwise the other kids would've teased me about not having a mom who cares . " Charles couldn't help but laugh . " Next time there's a school event , I'll ask Miss Naomi to go with you . " At his words , Yolanda's face lit up with delight , her earlier disappointment forgotten in an instant . She beamed vibrating with excitement . Giving her hair a playful tousle , Charles asked gently , " Ready to go see Grandpa now ? " at her father , practically Yolanda's smile faded . " Will Mom be there ? " she asked quietly . She still hadn't forgiven Teresa for missing today's event or for hitting Miss Naomi last time . The thought of seeing Mom made her uneasy . Besides , Mom would smother her with hugs and kisses , always carrying that faint kitchen smell . It wasn't like Miss Naomi , whose gentle hands always smelled like flowers . Charles studied Yolanda's conflicted expression and gave an honest nod . Yolanda understood they had to go tonight . With teary eyes , she looked up at Charles and said , " Then can I ignore Mom when I see her ? I haven't forgiven her yet , and I don't want to talk to her unless she apologizes to Miss Naomi ." Charles fastened her seatbelt and agreed . After calming Yolanda down , Charles drove to Lacey Mall . They picked up Roselyn at 5:30 pm , and by 6:00 pm , they were back at Logan Manor . The whole time , Roselyn had been making calls , inviting people over for dinner . Holding Yolanda's hand , Charles walked into the living room . To their surprise , the house was pitch dark . Not a single light was on . The dining table wasn't set , and the kitchen stood completely untouched , with no sign that any cooking had been done . Roselyn blinked hard , not believing what she was seeing . After Teresa married Charles , she never needed reminding about this day . Year after year , Teresa had everything perfectly ready without being asked . Even friends who had seen it all were impressed by her preparations . Roselyn loved showing this off to her friends , always 1/2 C Chapter 7 so proud of what Teresa could do . But the empty kitchen and dark living room made Roselyn explode , " What's Teresa thinking ? Has she completely forgotten what day this is ? " Muttering angrily , she grabbed her phone and called Teresa . But there was no answer . She tried again and again , only to get the same result . In a fit of anger , she threw her phone down hard , smashing it to pieces . Charles stayed remarkably composed , instinctively drawing Yolanda closer in a protective gesture . Keeping one arm around his daughter, he calmly proposed , " We'll take everyone out to dinner . I'll reserve the finest restaurant in Riverdale . " Roselyn glared at him and snapped , " We've always done this at home . I already told everyone we were hosting here this year , and now this ? " Her voice grew sharper . " Has Teresa lost her mind ? Seems she has forgotten what it means to be Mrs. Logan . No sense of responsibility at all ! " To begin with , Roselyn had never been on board with Charles marrying Teresa . If not for Charles's grandfather pushing for the match , she would have never accepted Teresa as part of the family . Yolanda , frightened by her grandmother's outburst , clung to Charles without a word . Charles paid no attention to Roselyn's complaints , his mind occupied with racing thoughts , ' Did something happen to Teresa ? I couldn't ach her yesterday . She missed Yolanda's school event and didn't prepare dinner . This isn't like her . But she's an adult . What could be wroY ! Snuggled in his arms , Yolanda mumbled , " Mom didn't make dinner and didn't come to school today on purpose . me look bad in front of everyone . She's not a good mom . Miss Naomi would never hurt my feelings like this . I don't anymore . " wanted to make Mom want 2/2